311 Miyagi's Other Side - Story About Buying My Classmate Once A Week

Miyagi's Other Side Chapter 311 I was taken aback. Miyagi was utterly unexpected. Instead of the blue sky or the black and white penguins, I looked at Miyagi's black hair. I should have stood next to her instead of behind her. With no small amount of regret, I gently moved the hand I'd placed on her shoulder, reaching to touch the tips of her hair. I wish she had kept looking at me forever. That's what I thought. Yet, in this place, I wanted her to look at the penguins. That's how I felt. If Miyagi could see both me and the penguins at the same time, I could maybe fulfill both desires, but a person's attention always leans one way. She would naturally focus on either me or the penguins; it's impossible to equally regard both. So, I made a choice. I lifted my gaze to the penguins. They were cute, but knowing they monopolized Miyagi's gaze was irritating. Although it was my choice, I didn't want to hand the gaze solely meant for me over to the penguins. If I could, I'd wish for Miyagi to always have eyes only for me. She need not look at anything else. I belong entirely to Miyagi, and so Miyagi should attentively observe and keep track of where and what her belonging is doing. Despite this line of thought, there was a reason I yielded to the penguins. Last summer vacation. I wanted to see Miyagi smiling again at the flying penguins. To make that wish come true, we came to this place. ――But it wasn't to be. From my position, I can't see Miyagi's face. Yet, I don't need her to look at me now since I hope she smiles at the penguins just like she did back then. I wish those frequent sullen expressions she holds in front of me could be replaced by smiles. I hope that one day she will laugh even if there are no penguins around, laugh even if we're not in this place, and laugh in front of me while looking at me. I place a bit more pressure on the hand on Miyagi's shoulder. I shift my gaze from the penguins to her black hair. There are times like this when I wish I could simply hold her. Maybe, if I could feel with my entire body that she is, indeed, smiling, the regret of giving her gaze to the penguins might just fade away. But, it's not something Miyagi would allow in a place like this. I withdraw my hand from feeling her warmth. At the very least, I want to preserve today’s version of Miyagi. Even if it's just for a few seconds. I take out my smartphone and step back three paces. Then I call out, to steal Miyagi’s gaze from the penguins— “Miyagi.” “What?” she says, turning around. With a click, I capture a photo of Miyagi with my phone. She isn't smiling. But her expression is softer than usual. Just a bit, she seems happier here than anywhere else. “Miyagi.” Though there’s nothing more to say, I can’t help but utter her name. Miyagi says nothing. Like before, she fixes her gaze intently on me. Like before, my heart drums noisily. Just by being looked at by Miyagi, I lose all sense of where I am, able to think of nothing but her. I want to abandon everything and reach out to her. I grasp the pendant over my clothes, one that bound me during my high school days. More than back then, I feel infinitely more bound to Miyagi now. Even wearing a pendant declaring me as hers, I need her so much that it isn’t enough. Feeling like I might break, I take another photo of Miyagi. Miyagi says nothing. Normally, she'd sulk, but right now she doesn't. “Sendai-san, look at the penguins.” A soft voice devoid of thorns reaches me. “I am.” I respond with words that neither seek to correct nor clarify. For me, the penguins are secondary. It’s Miyagi who should be looking at them, and I’m here to look at that Miyagi. “Then, take some pictures.” My body moves by itself at Miyagi’s words. I click the shutter and capture Miyagi within my phone. “Not me. The penguins.” Her voice comes a bit lower. “For what?” I click the shutter again. Though she looks a bit grumpier than in the previous shots, she's cute. Maybe I should have styled her hair in braids or ties. Even as she is, she's cute, but perhaps a different hairstyle would have suited the skirt Utsunomiya might have chosen. Ultimately, Miyagi should have let me pick the skirt. “I want to look at the penguins later, so take some pictures.” Miyagi replies while still looking at me. “If you want to see them, look now, right here.” “…Never mind, I'll look at the other penguins.” Saying this, she starts walking without looking at me. Without needing to think, “other penguins” refers to those over in the area designed to resemble a grassland, and I follow, walking beside her. There's no conversation. We walk in silence. The destination isn't far, so we arrive shortly, and Miyagi’s gaze shifts to the penguins. There are no opportunities for me to steal her gaze. “Can I take more pictures?” I ask this standing beside Miyagi who doesn’t look at me. "...Pictures of what?" “Of you, Miyagi.” “I already told you, take pictures of the penguins. I want to see them later.” "Won't you take any yourself?" “…I will.” With those words, she takes her phone out from her bag and points it at me for some reason. However, she doesn't take a photo, only furrows her brow. “I want to see the penguins you photographed too, Sendai-san, so take some shots.” “Okay.” Even though what I want to photograph is only Miyagi, when asked, I can’t refuse. Reluctantly, I point my smartphone toward the penguins. Click. Before I could even take the picture, I hear the sound of a shutter. Looking toward the sound, I find Miyagi’s phone pointed downward. I don’t know what she captured. It likely wasn’t the ground, so I hope it’s me the phone captured. “Sendai-san, properly take some pictures.” Her displeased voice orders me, and I redirect my phone back at the penguins. What I want to see and capture is right beside me. Right now, what I’m required to do is look at the penguins and photograph them, so I can’t look at or capture Miyagi. It’s a frustrating task for me, one I never imagined I’d find myself resenting. In the days I fantasized about a college life with Miyagi beside me, as a high school senior, I thought about how great it’d be but never truly believed such a future awaited. Time has passed since then, and Miyagi is beside me. I’d feel content if just having her by my side was enough, but I can’t stop myself from longing for more. “Miyagi, remember when we talked about sea lions and seals?” I mechanically focus my body toward the penguins while directing the smartphone at them, though I want to look at Miyagi. “I remember. The talk about their ear flaps, right?” “Yes.” The day we came to the aquarium, back home, we chatted about the difference between sea lions and seals, specifically the “auricles,” which were akin to earlobes. “Let’s go see the ears.” Stopping my photography, I turn toward Miyagi. “We saw them at the zoo.” Indeed, she was right; we confirmed at the zoo that sea lions had something akin to ears, but it's not as if you're only allowed to see auricles once in your life. "Let's look at them at the aquarium too." Without waiting for a response, I tugged at Miyagi's arm. We still had time. I wanted to capture as many pictures of Miyagi enjoying herself as possible, even if it meant filling up my phone’s storage. That's why I set off, making sure that she wouldn’t have the chance to say something like, "We’ve seen the penguins, so we should go home."